Death in Underground Frat's Hazing Ritual Shakes a SUNY Campus

Published: September 15, 2003

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''You should have the moral gumption to say: 'This is not good. We can't allow this,' '' President Clark said. ''People have to be educated. You're not being a rat. This is defending our college. What do you want Plattsburgh State to be?''

Law enforcement officials say that the ''brothers'' in the underground fraternity had started out using water as a way to counteract the effects of alcohol. ''Later they said, 'Let's just add it to the routine,' '' said the Clinton County district attorney, Rich Cantwell.

On the day Mr. Jennings died, he did not consume any alcohol, according to the medical examiner's report. Mr. Jennings was one of two pledges who made it to the final round, and he died on the last day of the 10-day pledge period, officials say.

Usually, hyponatremia afflicts marathon runners who ''exercise to the extreme'' and then overhydrate, Mr. Cantwell said. ''It's not a usual form of hazing,'' he said.

Prosecutors contend that Mr. Jennings was also subjected to another hazing ritual, in which he sat in a tiny room, basically a storage space under the eaves of the house. The fraternity members placed a space heater in the enclosed area, turned on a strobe light and blasted music.

Student leaders and fraternity members say Psi Epsilon Chi's reputation preceded it. It was famous for ''dorm-storming'' -- plastering invitations to its beer parties on memo boards outside students' doors.

''Many people almost saw it coming,'' Scott Wessner, a political science major and president of the college's Inter-Fraternity Council, said of the hazing death. ''They were taking new members in a 10-day program, and every day it was drinking and drinking, and a lot of people knew it.''

After Mr. Jennings died, the fraternities and sororities held a memorial service and candlelight vigil. Members of the legitimate Greek organizations, which collectively perform thousands of hours of community service a year, say the hazing episode has marred their reputation in particular and the university's as a whole. ''Greek organizations are ritual-based,'' said Stephen Sweet, a senior from Rochester who is a brother in Sigma Tau Gamma, which received an award from its national headquarters this year. ''People hear 'ritual' and they hear 'hazing.' It's frustrating.''

President Clark said part of his challenge now would be to overturn the ''romantic notion'' some students apparently hold of underground fraternities. ''Believe me, they don't want to be in an emergency room with a fellow student who is dying,'' he said. ''There's no romance in that.''

Photo: Students and alumni of SUNY Plattsburgh face charges related to a student's death. (Photo by Nancie Battaglia for The New York Times)